17 years and Rs 33 lakh spent, man still waits for shop in Rohini mall; court orders FIR against Parsvnath Developers

“In all the above-mentioned FIRs, the allegations are more or less similar against the accused persons — that they received a handsome amount from the investors on the pretext of providing them flats/shops, etc., but they never completed their part of the liability, resulting in FIR against them. Therefore, it can be safely said that accused persons are adopting the same modus operandi with their investors to induce them to invest in their projects,” said Additional Sessions Judge Dhirendra Rana of Rohini Court in his May 24 order.

The court was hearing a revision petition filed by a complainant, Amrit Pal Singh Malhotra, who was represented by advocates Prateek Som and Pradeep Khatri, against a 2024 magistrate court order that had refused to file an FIR against the developers.

The court disagreed with the trial court’s view that no police investigation was required in this case. “In the considered view of this court, it is a fit case to exercise discretion in favour of the complainant by ordering the police to register an FIR under relevant sections of law and to take up investigation without any further delay,” said the court, as it set aside the trial court order dated January 2, 2024.

The court ordered the Prashant Vihar police station to file an FIR against the accused and submit a compliance report before the trial court within two weeks, along with a copy of the FIR.

It also stated that the trial court had not discussed the previous antecedents of the accused, which are “glaring in nature”.

It further noted that the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission had issued a non-bailable warrant against an accused, Sanjeev Jain. He is the Managing Director and CEO of Parsvnath Developers. The police chased him for about 60 km, and the Special Task Force (STF) arrested him at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, the judge said.

The case dates back to an agreement from August 2007 between the shop buyer and the developer. The complainant was allegedly promised occupancy of a shop on the third floor of Parsvnath Mall in Rohini. According to the agreement, the construction was meant to be finished within 30 months.

After Malhotra paid Rs 33.5 lakh, which was the basic price of the shop, the accused allegedly started avoiding his calls. When he visited the construction site of the project, he discovered that all work had come to a complete halt.

In March 2019, the developers allegedly issued a letter stating that they were cancelling the agreement and issued a cheque of Rs 33.5 lakh to Malhotra. The cheque bounced, alleged Malhotra, due to “insufficient funds”.
“It is also admitted case of the accused persons that to date, no effective construction has been carried out despite the lapse of almost 17 years since the agreement between the parties. As per the recent report filed by Sub-Inspector Sandeep, only some pillars were constructed at the site and thereafter construction was stopped,” the court noted in its order.
Reacting to the order, Malhotra, a businessman hailing from Delhi but staying mostly in Australia, said, “The total sale price of the shop was Rs 77 lakh, and I had paid Rs 33 lakh. In 2008, when I visited the location where the shop was supposed to be built, there was not even a brick laid. Each time we moved the court or attempted to request the amount, we were given cheques that bounced, resulting in no concrete solution. I’m hoping after the FIR, I will get my money back.”